Ireland's Joe Ward beaten by Julio La Cruz in light heavyweight final
ByPA Sport
Published 02/09/2017 at 22:11 GMT
Ireland's Joe Ward had to settle for silver at the AIBA World Boxing Championships after he was beaten by Julio La Cruz in the light heavyweight final.
Joe Ward, left, was beaten by Julio La Cruz in Hamburg (AP)
Image credit: PA Sport
All five judges had La Cruz winning the fight in Hamburg, meaning 23-year-old Ward has lost to the Cuban at three successive world championships.
Ward, who reached the final on a split-decision, began aggressively but struggled to land clean punches on his more experienced opponent.
La Cruz, the reigning Olympic champion, showed his class and eventually came through on points to secure a fourth straight world gold.
The result was unanimous, with three of the judges scoring it 29-28 in 28-year-old La Cruz's favour and the other two marking it 30-27.
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